Maryland's Lexie Brown, left, passes from her knees as Connecticut's Moriah Jefferson struggles to block in the second half of an NCAA basketball game Friday, Nov. 15, 2013 in College Park, Md. Connecticut won 72-55.(AP Photo/Gail Burton) less

Maryland's Lexie Brown, left, passes from her knees as Connecticut's Moriah Jefferson struggles to block in the second half of an NCAA basketball game Friday, Nov. 15, 2013 in College Park, Md. Connecticut won ... more

Photo: GAIL BURTON, Associated Press

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Connecticut's Moriah Jefferson shoots as Maryland's Laurin Mincy tries to block in the first half of an NCAA basketball game Friday, Nov. 15, 2013 in College Park, Md.(AP Photo/Gail Burton)

Connecticut's Moriah Jefferson shoots as Maryland's Laurin Mincy tries to block in the first half of an NCAA basketball game Friday, Nov. 15, 2013 in College Park, Md.(AP Photo/Gail Burton)

Photo: GAIL BURTON, Associated Press

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Jefferson bounces back strong for UConn

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COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- Sophomore Moriah Jefferson was upset. Her play against No. 3 Stanford Monday was hardly what she expects from herself.

Jefferson is the starting point guard for No. 1 UConn. The role comes with a certain level of responsibility. And she felt as if she let her team down.

Heading into Friday's match-up at No. 8 Maryland, Jefferson was not about to let it happen again. It did not. She generated 15 points, three rebounds, four assists and three steals in a career-high 35 minutes as the short-handed Huskies rolled to an impressive 72-55 victory before 15,327 at the Comcast Center.

"I played really bad the last game,'' Jefferson said. "That's no secret to anybody. But I got in the gym a lot more, got some shots up. And I wanted to come in and be there for my team. So no matter what that was what I wanted to do, and step up on defense and on offense too.''

Jefferson had two points (1-of-7 FG), two rebounds, two assists, zero steals and two turnovers in 17 minutes against Stanford. She was 7-of-11 from the field Friday and she did not commit a turnover.

With UConn down to seven scholarship players due to injuries to All-American Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis (right elbow) and Morgan Tuck (right knee) and facing a Top-10 team on the road, Jefferson showed plenty of moxie by bouncing back in impressive fashion.

"It was awesome,'' UConn sophomore Breanna Stewart said. "For her to respond the way she did after the Stanford game, you wouldn't want a player to respond any other way.''

Jefferson, who played all 20 minutes of the second half, was a significant catalyst in two key runs by the Huskies (3-0). She scored four points in a span of 25 seconds late in the first half, including two off of a steal in the backcourt, as UConn scored the final six points of the half to open a 43-38 lead at halftime.

Jefferson then had seven points during UConn's decisive 22-6 run in the second half that transformed a 43-43 tie with 18:58 left into a rout.

She scored off a layup. She converted her second steal in the backcourt into another layup and later capped the run with a 3-pointer with 10:54 left.

"She's a game-changer," UConn coach Geno Auriemma said. "Not everybody can be a game-changer. She's a game-changer. She's got a lot of ability, a tremendous amount of ability. And you come up here all the way from Dallas, I'm sure there's some pressure on her to be good. And I think, like any other kid, she's probably questioning last year, `Am I good enough to play.' So I think that's past. She knows she's good and she's enjoying it. She's fun to watch.''

When asked if she would have been able to summon this type of performance in this situation last season, Jefferson could not say for sure. She had little doubt that she would come around Friday. With her confidence so high, she is able to leave the past behind and move forward.

Jefferson is actively looking to make plays. And she made plenty of them in helping UConn take down Maryland.

"I was settled in the whole game,'' Jefferson said. "I knew I couldn't let myself get worked up or overworked. Just come out and play.''